Recent entries

    Cradle ()
    #1801 Copy

    Questioner

    it's mentioned there is only one underlord in the desolate wilds, and only a handful in the blackflame empire, so who is the underlord in the wilds? Assuming someone from the cloud hammers or the 5th unmentioned sect, or another unmentioned sect?

    Will Wight

    The Cloud Hammers are a relatively small sect, but they produced an Underlord and have a pretty good chance at a second one, so their influence is growing in the Blackflame Empire. And the Arelius family is far bigger and more important than the Jai clan branch from the Desolate Wilds. I should have explained that better in the book, using clearer terminology, and I apologize for that. The Jai in the Wilds are the unimportant. The cast-offs. The only reason the main branch of the clan got involved with them at all was because of Eithan's actions, as well as Cassias' and Jai Long's. Otherwise, the main branch would have let them die alone and never noticed or cared. EDIT: And the Cloud Hammer Underlord stayed out of the events of Soulsmith because he considered squabbling for prizes with Golds beneath him. If Eithan had stayed longer (cough cough if the books were longer cough cough), then the CH Underlord would have made an appearance.

    Cradle ()
    #1802 Copy

    Questioner

    Word of Will response to :That's a different take on it than I had. At this point, I'm not considering Lindon's personal growth as much as his team's. You've got the sword master with what I assume will eventually be 6 sword arms sticking from her back, the strategist with no outstanding combat strength, and I'm thinking Jai Long and Jai Chen, as well. Overwhelming destructive power was actually missing from their group. Besides that, Lindon's second core is the air of mystery and the unexpected for me. Curious what he's really able to do with it later.

    Will Wight

    "You've nailed my thought process. My priority is to balance his eventual team more than Lindon as an individual."

    Cradle ()
    #1803 Copy

    Questioner

    How are everyday tasks handled?

    Will Wight

    Different places in the world handle the basic necessities of life differently. Some places have sects that focus entirely on farming or whatever, but other places prize independence and self-sufficiency. Those sacred artists value the ability to provide food, resources, and basic societal infrastructure for the people that depend on them.

    Cradle ()
    #1804 Copy

    Questioner

    Would a fire path be one of the fastest way to level up? All you would have to do is stand next to a barn-fire and absorb the ambient fire manna it would give off, then refine it. On that note how different would the manna type be, between different types of fire. A hearth-fire warming a family home in the winter, with all the "happy" connotation that come with it, compared to like an arson attack destroying someone's home and possession and just everything that they have worked for. Both are fire but you get what I mean.

    Will Wight

    A fire Path would not be the fastest way to advance, because the aura would be slightly rarer and harder to collect compared to, say, earth or air. But it's still very fast, as are all the Paths that draw from aura easily found in nature.

    There WOULD be significant differences between those two Paths! Fire from different Paths could take on different qualities depending on how it's used an where it comes from; you could have a gentle flame that spreads slowly and provides lots of even warmth, versus a violent flames that consumes rapidly and burns out quickly.

    Cradle ()
    #1805 Copy

    Questioner

    How will Lindon act the first time he meets someone weaker then him? While Lindon has gotten to what I would call half-iron (his cores are half the size they should be so he levels them up faster then he normal would, and only one avenged to iron) and that makes him stronger then most people his age in the Sacred Valley. Knowing that and meeting them while stronger then them are different. I bring this up because out side of a few people everyone we have met seems to have no trouble "bullying" those weaker then themselves. I know this is a might makes right society but still part of the honor of that system is to ingore/protect those weaker then you. If you only follow those "laws" when other are watching you then that's not honor its saving face. When will we meet people who follow these codes of conduct not for themselves or for "face" but because they believe in them?

    Will Wight

    This is 100% a spoiler.

    Cradle ()
    #1806 Copy

    Questioner

    Who does all of the farming in Cradle? In a society so focused on martial martial abilities. Who would waste time on farming? We know the population of Cradle is many times greater then Earth. So tens of billion of people need to eat. The only real solution I could think of is if there are Paths that happen to both greatly help agriculture and has combat potential. Or as we saw in book two slavery.

    Will Wight

    There are Paths that are used for agriculture and irrigation, they're just usually low-key. There's a (very) brief reference in Blackflame to the Redflower family, who are in charge of feeding the Empire. By law, they are neutral in every conflict, and anybody who starts a fight with them or tries to pressure them will soon regret it.

    Cradle ()
    #1812 Copy

    Questioner

    How are scales made and what are they? An inert Forger technique for storing power?

    Will Wight

    Scales: pretty much, yeah. It's a way to store inert power. They actually take more concentration and skill to make than normal Forged madra, which we'll (probably) go into in Skysworn.

    Cradle ()
    #1813 Copy

    Questioner

    How did the Blood line powers originate and how come the Jae Clan don't have any? Are they not one the "Great Families?"

    Will Wight

    Not everyone inherits a bloodline legacy. Higher-level sacred beasts can take human form, so some people have sacred beast lineage that gives them certain innate supernatural abilities. That includes the Arelius family, but not the Jai clan.

    In most cases, a bloodline legacy means that you're naturally inclined more toward one Path than another, though. Your madra might not be entirely pure, even at birth.

    The Arelius are an exception to that.

    Cradle ()
    #1815 Copy

    Questioner

    The other Raccoon Families have brought up a good point about Gokren, the Sandviper TrueGold. Does BlackFlame hold the power to incinerate not only the human, but their remnant at the same time? Or was it just because Orthos is a walking trash compactor and ate Gokren and his remnant?

    Will Wight

    No, I just skipped the scene with Orthos and Lindon dealing with the Remnants. The technique didn't destroy the Remnants; I just looked back over the scene, and they kill the guys and then the text skips ahead five minutes.

    I had intended to imply that Lindon and Orthos spent five minutes cleaning up the Remnants, but I didn't state that. It's an oversight on my part. I should have said something specifically.

    Writing Advice ()
    #1817 Copy

    Aru

    Ooh, a questions for Will page. I'll ask a question. This is more relevant to writing than any of your books though: Where do you go to find good beta readers? I hate pushing qualifications and saying "You must be this good to read my writing!" , but I've learned you can't just take advice from anyone, otherwise your story will turn into something you didn't want it to be. Maybe it's my fault and I'm just not good enough at sorting the good advice from the bad, but if you've got a link to a magic El Dorado for people who can give good criticism, I'd appreciate it.

    Will Wight

    The best thing I got out of my Master's program was a lot of experience both giving and receiving feedback. I learned a lot about how to take feedback, which feedback to take, and how to sort through people's responses to the work.     The key to understanding people's feedback (in my experience) is that Neil Gaiman quote: “Remember: when people tell you something’s wrong or doesn’t work for them, they are almost always right. When they tell you exactly what they think is wrong and how to fix it, they are almost always wrong.” In terms of picking beta readers, you want people who will tell you the truth about their experience as a reader. Then you can decide how to apply that to the book. If they're people who read and they'll share their experience with you honestly, it's good feedback.
    Cradle ()
    #1819 Copy

    Questioner

    Oh by the way is Akura Mercy a refiner or is studying to be one, or did she just have easy to use healing/medical elixir with her in the Skysworn exam.

    Will Wight

    She just keeps some on her in case of emergency.

    For the record, I'm still CONSIDERING doing a story in Sacred Valley after Lindon left. I just have to be careful how I do it, to avoid the dreaded spoilerinos.

    As for before Lindon left, that's not a bad idea. Or even before Lindon was born.